People

Shiva Azimi is a PhD student working in human-centered transportation. She has led the development of a multi-agent, multimodal simulation environment for studying interactions among drivers, cyclists, pedestrians, and transportation technologies. Her research leverages behavioral, physiological, and visual-attention data to develop comprehensive driver profiles and study human–automation interaction. Ultimately, her work aims to bridge the gap between people and intelligent transportation systems by integrating human behavior into the design of future transportation technologies.

Yasaman is a Ph.D. student in Transportation Engineering at Villanova University with a background in architectural engineering. Drawn to interdisciplinary research, she studies human-centered transportation by connecting transportation engineering with architecture, urban design, human behavior, and human–machine interaction. Her research focuses on understanding people’s experiences across different modes of transportation, including walking, public transit, and automated vehicles, using emerging technologies such as virtual reality, eye tracking, physiological sensing, and geospatial analysis to support safer, more inclusive, and more human-centered mobility systems.

Maya (Maedeh) Yousefi is a Civil Engineering Ph.D. student and Dean’s Fellow at Villanova University, where her research bridges advanced computing and transportation. She focuses on human-centered transportation systems, autonomous vehicles, and automated driving. Maya holds a master’s degree from Amirkabir University of Technology and has contributed to research across multiple institutions. Driven by a desire to improve people’s lives, she uses emerging technologies to build smarter, safer, and more resilient urban systems.

Bio

Laila is an undergraduate researcher majoring in Civil and Environmental Engineering working on projects that explore intersection safety as it relates to human behavior, vehicle autonomy, and pedestrian safety. Her work within the lab centers on producing community driven designs, with models that can be applied and developed to multiple different applications.

Bio

My name is Abigail Kim, and I am a sophomore at Villanova University majoring in Computer Engineering with a minor in Cybersecurity. I am from New Jersey and have a strong interest in artificial intelligence and its applications in solving real-world problems. In my free time, I enjoy playing golf, working out, and traveling. Through Villanova’s Match and VURF research programs, I am currently working on a F1Tenth racing vehicle, developing algorithms for computer vision, perception, and decision-making to help the car navigate its environment autonomously.

My name is Maxwell D’amore, and I am from Lynnfield, Massachusetts, studying Electrical Engineering here at Villanova. I chose to apply for research because I want to work on a project that I am genuinely interested in and to sharpen my critical thinking to solve problems. I am really interested in cars and one day want to visit BMW’s headquarters in Munich, Germany.

My name is Anthony Collins, I am from Pittsburgh, PA, and am currently a sophomore electrical engineering student. I hope to benefit and exemplify human needs through virtual reality and engineer simulations that showcase the effects of a different planetary environment on humanity.